Road maintainer



Jan. 6, 1931.

4 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR JOSEPH L. BECKER ATTORNEY J. L. BECKER ROAD MAINTAINER Filed June 7. 1929 Jan. 6, 1931.

4 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR Jess 1;. BECKER AORNEY Jamfi, 1931. J, L, BECKER 1,788,044

ROAD MAINTAINER Filed June '7, 1929 4 Sheets-Sheet 5- INVENTOR JOSEPH .L. BECKER ATTORN EY Jan. 6, 1931. J. L. BECKER 1,788,044 ROAD MAIMAINER Filed June '7. 1929 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR JOaEPH L. EEC/5R Patented. Jan. 6, 1931 srrs .ATENT orFlce JosErn L. BECKER, or s'rrnnwa rnn, mnvnnsora Bonn MAINTAINER Application filed June 7, 1929. Serial No. 369,075.

ticularly set forth in my co-pending appl'i- 15 cation, Ser. No. 369,074, filed June 7, 1929, but to incorporate such mechanism in a different style of grader and with. adifi'erent organization of parts, with a resulting new combination and certain advantageous bene- 2O fits and results as will hereinafter be set-forth.

' Inthe accompanying drawings:

,Fig 1 is a side elevation of a combination tractor-grader machine embodying my present invention.

Fig. 2 is a top or plan view of the machine as shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged detail elevation, partly in section, as seen substantially on the line 33 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a plan view of the machine similar to Fig. 2, but showing the grader unit with its blade controls converted whereby they may be controlled by'the tractor operator at H the tractor.;

Referring to the drawings more particularly and by reference characters, A designates a tractor, which may be of any well known or desired type, and to the rear end of v the tractor is attached the front end of the grader frame B. The connection betweenthe tractor and grader frame is efi'ected a universal coupler C, which not only holds the front end of the frame up but also permits it to trail, and to tilt transversely behind and F with respectto the tractor. Thegrader frame is supported at its rear by apair of laterally disposed wheels 5 and 6, andcarries a seat 7 comprising the operators station. From this station the operator is able to control and steer the tractor through extension devices consisting of steering shaft D, carburetor or speed control rod E, gear shift rod F, and

clutch control mechanism G, all of which parts 21,13, 0, D, E, F, and G are describedin detail in my application, Ser. No. 268,547.

, Rigidly secured tothe frame B is a circle or annular meinberS to which the grader blade 9 is secured as-by brackets 10. V The blade 10 is lifted andangularly adjusted by lifting, and: angular-1y adjusting the main frameB, in a manner now to be described.

The wheels 5 and dare secured upon stub shafts 11 at the outer or rear ends of a pair of crank arms 12. These arms are trunnioned vupon theouter ends of a transverse shaft 13 that is rigidly secured tothetra'me B. The cranks 12 are each supplemented by integral- "ly formed depending arms 14 and rearwardly The arms 14 are connected inclined arms 15..

.to forward points i on the main frame by heavy springs 16, which, being so disposed and connected, tend to counterbalance the weight oi the grader frame and its mechanisms by holding the center 13 up with respect to the wheels 5 andG. i

The arms 15 are pivotally connected, as at 17, to castings 18 secured in the rear or outerends of a pair oftubular sleeves 19, whichsleeves telescope into outer tubular sleeves 20. These outer sleeves are carried in castings 21 that are in turn journaled in bearing members 22 fixed on the side rails or beams of the frame B. Each of the sleeves 19, as shown in Fig, 3, has a threaded portion 23 that meshes with an elongated screw 24 the upper or forward end of which is journaled in a cap or plate 25 securedin the forward end of the sleeve 20. Secured upon the plate 25 a hollow head casting 26 containing bevel pinions 27 and 28 the latter of which iskeyed onto the screw 24. The pinion 27 is secured on a stub shaft that is journaled in the head member 26 and carries a hand wheel 29 on its outerend. By turning either 0f the hand wheels 29 it will thus be seen that the operator is able to raise or lower either side of the frame and consequently will secure transverse angular adjustments of the blade 9, and by manipulating both wheels he is able o r is a l welfthe entire blade. As th ,by the castings 21 at points substantially be tween their ends'thcre is no tendency for the sleeves or screws to bind, and when properly lubricated they will operateveryeasily, in fact, with the springs 16 properly adjusted the wheels 29 will spin freely in either direction and with very little resistance Thus the operator is able to vertically or angularly adjust the blade with but very little effort, yet the blade being rigid with the heavy frame B will remain at a uniform level and will operate with a minimum amount of vibration and lost motion.

Provisionmust of course also be made for adjusting the angular position of the blade with respect to the line of draft, and this maybe done in any suitable manner such as by makingthe circle 8 adjustable about a vertical axis, as disclosed in my previously noted application, Ser. No. 268,547.

In the converted form of machine as shown in Fig. 4, the extension controls for the tractor are omitted, as are also the head members 26 and the parts 27, 28, and 29. In this in-,

stance the pinions 28 are substituted by uni-c versal joints 30 of shafts 31 that carry hand wheels 32 and are supported by brackets 33. The hand wheels 31 are so arranged that they can be conveniently reached and manipulated by the tractor driver when he turns about on or with the tractor seat 33. By thus convertingthe machine it will be seen that one man can control both the tractor and grader units, from" the tractor, while, in the structure shown in Figs. 1-3, both the tractor and grader controls are within reach of the operator at the station 7. In thelatter instance the operator is of course in a better position to have the tractor and grader blade under visual observation and control.

It is understood that suitable modifications may be made in the structure as disclosed, provided such modifications come within the spirit and scope of the appended claims, Having now therefore fully illustrated and described my invention what. I claim to be new and desire to protect by Letters Patent is: i

.1. In a machine of the charactcr described the combination including a frame suitably supported at its forward end, a pair of laterally disposed wheels for supporting the rear end of the frame, crank members connecting said wheels to the frame, two pair of telescoped sleeves pivotally mounted one pair at each side of the frame and connected to the respective cranks for adjusting-the latter, operating screws in the sleeves, a pair of hand wheels carried one by one of the sleeves of each pair of said sleeves and operative in planes parallel thereto, and intermeshing bevel gears connecting the hand wheels to the respective operating screws.

2. The combination with a frame and a ground wheel for supporting a part of the same, of a crank member connecting the ground wheel to the frame, an outer sleeve 7 tiltably secured to the frame, an innersleeve telescoping with the outer sleeve and connected at one end to the crank member, an operating screw within the sleeves, a hand wheel carried at one end of the outer sleeve so as to be oscillatable therewith when the latter is tilted, and disposed parallel with respect to the vertical plane of the sleeve, and an operative connections between the hand wheel and the screw.

3. The combination with a frame and a ground wheel forsupporting a part of the same, of a crank member connecting the ground wheel to the frame, an outersleeve tiltably secured to the frame, an inner sleeve telescoping with the outer sleeve and connected at, one end to the crank member, an operating screw within the sleeves, a hand wheel carried at one end of the outer sleeve so as to be oscillatable therewith when the latter is tilted, and a pair of intermeshing bevel gears operatively connecting the hand wheel to the said operating screw.

L. The combination with a frame and a ground wheel for supporting a part of the same, of a'crank member connecting the ground wheelto the frame, an outer sleeve tiltably secured to the frame, an inner sleeve telescoping with the outer sleeve and connected at one end to the crank member, an operating screw within the sleeves, a hollow head member carried by the outer sleeve, a pair of intermeshing gears within the head member, one of said gears being secured upon the screw, and a hand wheel rotatably carried by the head for driving the other gear.

5. The combination with a frame and a wheel for supporting one corner thereof, of a crank connecting the wheel and frame, a pair of telescoped sleeves connecting the crank and frame, a hollow head for oneof the sleeves, a screw operatively connecting the sleeves and extending with one end into the hollow head, a handwheel carried by the head with its axis at right angles to the axis of the screw, and a pair of bevel pinions within the head forming an operative connection between the screw and hand wheel.

6. The combination with a frame and a wheelfor supporting one corner thereof, of a substantially horizontally disposed crank connecting the wheel and frame, an arm formed integrally with and extending upwardly from the crank, an adjustable connection between said arm, and a portion of the frame, a second arm integral with and extending downwardly from the crank, and a counterbalanclng sprmg connectmg sald second arm wlth the frame.

7. The combination with a frame and a wheel for supporting one corner thereof, of

a substantially horizontally disposed crank connecting the wheel and frame, an .arm formed integrally with andextending upwardly from the crank, an adjustable connection between said arm and a portion of the frame, a second arm integral with and eX- tending downwardly from the crank, and a oounterbalancing spring connecting said second arm with the frame, said first mentioned arm being substantially longer than the secondarm whereby the adjusting movement of said connection will be substantially greater than the stretching movement 1mj parted to the spring.

Signed at Stillwater, in the county of lVashington, and State of Minnesota, this 3d day of June, 1929.

JOSEPH L. BECKER. 

